The Wildwood in der mitternacht

Night hung heavy in the sky above, the air thick with spring humidity. Little silver stars seemed to lack their usual twinkle, staring down like countless sets of disapproving eyes. The arctic female felt their glare on her back as she stole through the tangled woods, swift and careless in her step. Electricity crackled through her veins, shocking her with every stride that removed her further and further from the Keep. She had every intention of coming back - always had - but in light of her recent life it felt very evil to need this time away. Quick could not help herself tonight. With each step she sought to escape her own skin, to purge herself from her own chaos.

Somewhere along the way the thickening wood turned more green and the smell of her own allegiance died out. No longer inhaling it with every breath she forced herself to slow down, hoping that clean air could refresh her system. Quick struggled to understand certain... opinions she had formed in that regard. And for a wolf of her caliber, it worked much better to wriggle her way from the shackles she'd made for herself than to stand and fight. Thus she pushed through the overgrown forest, winding around ancient tree trunks and slogging through tall green grasses and stomping on wildflowers with no remorse. Her mind churned without thought, full of static noise that prickled her temples. There had to be a way to stop it.

With one more stride the canopy broke apart and from the tangled overgrowth she made her way into a clearing, not very large but illuminated by the moon's light. Without branches grasping at her fur and roots stumbling her step the pale wolf suddenly found it much easier to breathe. She halted, flexing her toes against the soft grasses, and finally peered into the sky as if to confront it. She glared back in return, her silver eyes hot like liquid metal. Damn him.

(This post was last modified: May 15, 2014, 08:31 PM by Quick.)

Hope you don't mind me joining...! If you do, I can just leave eheh.

The little silver stars hung tense and tight in the night skies as the Hollowheart Keep subordinate stole through the woods below, though they seemed to visibly relax as yet another wolf was introduced into the electrified space. This wolf had a much kinder face but with an equal delight for the melodramatic. Perhaps it was this delight that drew her into the occupied canopy space where she spied the other wolf through her leaf camouflage. My! What a sight. The other wolf was terrible to behold with a face as beautiful but as cold as a statue. The small wolf had always admired white pelts, and this particular wolf's pelt was pristine and spotless. Leaf glanced down at her own pelt, which was in need of cleaning. After dragging herself through the Wildwood, which had been an adventure in itself, it looked like a hot mess. But not the sexy kind of hot. Licking her shoulder once or twice in an attempt to make herself somewhat presentable, she returned her attention to the other female and narrowed her eyes. It was obvious to everyone that this female was not in the best of moods, but the nagging question of why this was so twinkled so brightly across her face that it positively sparkled. It was with this radiant face that Leaf cautiously poked her head from beyond the leaves. She glanced at the stars above and then back at the female. "Even though they're scared of you, they're stubborn too. My bets are that you'll be the first one to blink." It was only somewhat apparent that the lone wolf was referring to the stars and the staring game they were obviously participating in. Leaf risked a small smirk and remained unblinking herself. She wanted to know more about this wolf for particular reasons, which she hoped she could make known in due time.

There is a deer that was killed by a lynx nearby. +10 Health

No, you're more than welcome! :) Also sorry I saw the chance and I took it lol

Quick's mind-consuming kerfuffle kept her attention inward, failing to pick up on the hints in the air that another wolf had discovered the Wildwood's clearing. The shuffling of greenery so very close to her position was the only indication she recognized. With an instinctive bristle the Keep wolf whirled toward the sound, responding to the spoken riddle with a baring of her teeth while she adjusted to the situation. She was surprised to hear something so eloquent right now - and spoken from a wolf who had only partially revealed herself through the foliage. Something about the small female (besides the whole partial-reveal thing) had Quick perplexed, and in that sense also irritated. What the hell did she look so chipper for?

"Clever," she spat, mulling over the personification in her head. "And true," she added more quietly. The Arctic wolf slowly tilted her chin skyward so she might look down her nose at the younger wolf, relaxing her posture but refusing to move any closer. She was incredibly apprehensive of the little red thing, very confused by the glitter in her eyes as she stared. It was late, so Quick did not assume the other wolf wanted something of her. Most possible was that they were just in the same place at the same time. That didn't make Quick trust any easily, however. Was she smiling without her mouth?

She was uncomfortable in this situation, and that didn't sit well with her, given her already chaotic state of mind. In an effort to regain the upper hand that this strange wolf had somehow ripped from her grasp she pursed her dark lips and narrowed her silver eyes to stare right back. "Let me guess. Your name's leaf." She tittered quietly to herself. With just her head poking out from the neighboring foliage that's exactly what she looked like. If it was immature of her to make such a joke, Quick either didn't realize it or didn't mind (it's the latter).

I thought it was funny...! Especially me imagining Quicksilver tittering haha.

Leaf blinked hard and acted as if she herself had been spat upon. Rubbing a paw across her eyes, she stepped out a step and gave an abbreviated bow. It was good to be praised for her assessments, perhaps especially when they rang true. Even though the situation called for some caution as the other wolf was well attuned, Leaf seemed to lack this instinct of danger. Instead she continued to stand with the same little smirk, her bushy tail swaying calmly behind her. It was a real surprise that the Little Red Wolf had been able to make it this far, but perhaps it was here that she would encounter the Big Bad Hunter. (She had read about it once in a book.) But not if this hunter also happened to be a witch! Taken aback by the accuracy of the other wolf's own assessment, she mirrored this surprise with a physical step backwards. Her pale green eyes were wide, and the smirk had vanished from her face, but it was not long before that surprise turned into veritable worship. "Tell me! she said, jerking forward yet another step, "Tell me! Are these the powers that all your pack members possess?" Yes she had imagined that the other wolf could have introduced her to a pack with food and shelter and maybe even friends, but she had never imagined it would also hold prophets such as these! It was almost too good to be true, yet Leaf had never quite agreed with the phrase, seeing as all good was truth in the end. It was then that yet another look of mischief crossed her youthful features. Leaf narrowed her eyes and then tilted her head, and if allowed, was quiet for a long time. It was only after a near minute that the little red wolf cried out "And your name must be Snowflake! Frost! Or Ice! Or how about Ray of Moonlight!" She inhaled. "Cottonball?" Perfectly suitable for the other female who resembled all of those things.

(This post was last modified: May 23, 2014, 08:16 PM by Leaf.)

The wolf moved closer, lowering her body in some form of a bow, while Quick took an equal step in reverse, trying to maintain a respectable distance from the ruddy-colored character. Something about her demeanor reminded Quick of a fairy, or some other sort of made up winged imp, with her tail swaying like a jester's flag. And of course, she took this as an offense rather than just a personality trait. Quick bristled as the other wolf bounced forward with some sort of command to be told - what? If the rest of the Keep could give her a ridiculous nickname? If that constituted power in her book, then perhaps they could. But then again, the Keep wolves weren't much for talking - so perhaps they wouldn't name her going after her blood.

With a cool shrug of her shoulders she leaned closer to the red wolf, silver eyes trained keenly on her green ones and said with a devious grin, "You'd be surprised what my pack members can do." She wondered if any of them would find enjoyment toying with this 'leaf' character while the 'leaf' character toyed back. Sometimes there was a very dry vibe within the tangles of their home. But with that there was also a rather violent undercurrent, so who really knew?

Then the young wolf did something precariously odd, letting her head sit crooked for a quiet moment. Quick narrowed her eyes, uncertain of what this meant. Was she charging up for some sort of blast of super-strange behavior? The Arctic female adjusted herself, allowing her tail to rise and nearly curl over her back in a dominant assertion - and yet she was taken back regardless when a slew of words came flying off the other's tongue - all of them apparently names the other would have preferred for Quick. At first they were not so bad, and then they got progressively worse. Cottonball? She play too much.

Quick uttered a short snarl to silence the other, completed by snapping her teeth in the space between them. "Try again, Leaf," she challenged. "I didn't like any of those."

Had a hard time deciding what to do, but I think this is how Leaf would respond. If you think it fitting, you can have Quicksilver follow her (as I still want to write with you!). Otherwise, I'm sorry this wasn't a very long thread. Maybe someone else can join and play with you?

Leaf was not cowed. Though she certainly was a wolf by nature, she seemed to lack an apparent instinct for danger. It was not that she did not sense the danger (though this was not always readily apparent), but rather that she simply did not care. She watched as the other female gave a devious grin, which was followed by a rather cryptic statement, and she frowned. It was such an ugly smile, she thought, on an otherwise pretty face. Not moving towards the other female, she stated neither dominance nor submission. She had little interest considering she was not personally invested in this particular pack. She made a mental note of the other female's scent. This pack would probably not be her cup of Irish Breakfast Tea. "That I cannot do for I am not a magician like you!" she said without pretense. Even though she knew she would be forfeiting the opportunity to gain wisdom from who was possibly a veritable witch, she knew magic existed everywhere. Fortune would find her again. As for her, she smelled other present opportunities. The smell of a fresh kill made her salivate. It was hard to come by such a good meal as a lone wolf. Knowing that the danger of a lynx nearby, she measured the risk and decided she would rather spar with a lynx than the Ice Queen before her. She was quite the thief, after all. Taking a step back further into the foliage and shadows, she smiled. "Maybe your name could be Cloud with a Silver Lining, but I think that name fits you least of all. I'll be on my way. You may join if you wish!" With that she bounded off without another word. At least she had subtly invited the other wolf to the kill--all the while not knowing that her last guess had been closest of all (though even then very far off).

(This post was last modified: May 25, 2014, 01:54 AM by Leaf.)

That's alright! I do prefer to stay true to character so this is where they'd dip out :P Maybe they'll meet again - oor you could meet one of my nicer characters. I'll hold off on archiving just yet so maybe we'll get our points.

Her nose wrinkled faintly as she tried to understand how this leaf-imitator thought. "Clearly," Quick murmured to the red wolf's odd remark. There was nothing magic about her, she thought bitterly, and it was trying to stand here and listen to literally the weirdest wolf she had ever met before. She recognized that there were far kinder wolves out there, but had trouble coming to terms with the idea that anyone would be able to stomach this kind of foolery. Too many abstract ideas for her taste. Quick knew what she was, she was wolf - not cotton or cloud or whatever. The red wolf seemed to think herself some bel-esprit. Quick knew she was not.

Then their dynamic changed. The youth stepped backwards instead of coming closer, opening the space between them. Quick watched as she did so, her silver eyes crackling with static and distrust. She suggested another weird name, and much to her distaste the Arctic female had to agree it perhaps fit her the least of all. There was nothing soft about her, nothing gentle to behold wih enough wear. At least the youth could understand that. And then she added, much to Quick's relief, that she would be on her way.

Quick pursed her lips at the invitation but remained quiet while the wolf bounded away. She did not relax, not yet, still reeling from the oddity that was their encounter. "Rather not," she remarked once she was satisfied that the female would not return. And speaking of returning, perhaps it was her turn now - clearly there was nothing good beyond the borders.

chucking chulyin in here whoop

Since he'd let her back into the pack, Chulyin had kept his distance. His sister and her suitor seemed fine with the reappearance of the woman and so the Knight had no reason to complain. Despite the space he put between them, the man felt as though he needed to keep an eye on her. Under the guise of distrust, he would trail her scent to ensure that she was not wandering off again. Perhaps in reality he simply wanted to ensure her safety, but he kept that in the back of his mind. On this particular night, somewhat sleepless, he patrolled the borders only to find that Quick had left a trail in her wake, leading away from the Keep. Chulyin's ears twitched, tempted to disregard it, put this thing behind him finally. He moved on along the border until the thought became too much to bear and began to follow her scent.

Hackles rose as he broke into a run, wondering what the woman might be doing so far away from the Keep so late at night. Perhaps he had been right to "distrust" her. The tangled woods gradually changed around him until he found himself among the charred trunks of the Wildwood. Tongue passing over his lips, he let his paws carry him a bit further until he grew tired. His muscles ached as they ought to have after running for such a distance. "Quick!" He barked, his hindquarters dropping to the earth so that he might catch his breath.

Lurking until the end of July - Please PM/tag me to get my attention

*matches*

table by bryony

Just when she thought she was alone, Quick heard her name, carried on his voice. Had it not been for her strange encounter she might have stumbled backward as if physically slapped, but the red wolf had actually taken Quick's mind off her unresolved feelings. She forgot this easily, not wanting to have it in her mind for even a second that she owed any thanks to that 'leaf' character. Her need to return to the Keep lands was exacerbated by this development, and so with fast steps she headed toward Chulyin's scent. The pale wolf tried to outrun the resurgence of her chaos, giving a short warning bark that she was indeed on her way to him - for both of their sakes. He was seated when she found him. The length of her strides shortened until she stopped. Though she wanted to avoid his sun-like gaze Quick forced herself to look at him, to face him while all her uncertainties hadn't yet made it back to the surface. She thought it might hurt to see the dark wolf so close, but instead it just felt... familiar. Not painful. Pursing her dark lips and ignoring whatever that meant she addressed him with a half-hearted innocence, "What?" Not the ill-conceived way in which she had snapped at him the last time she spoke. This time her voice was calm, genuinely wondering why he sought her out here - or so she crafted it to be. Her expression remained neutral, hoping his distaste in her would have subsided by some luck.